Manual Lens Junkie: 2013

I'm sitting in the living room, trying to focus in an attempt to write a few words. But can I concentrate when this god-damned telly is broadcasting, or actually screaming out a fucking Mexican soap opera alternately with these no-body-gives-a-sugar ads?! Oh Jah man! Our modern world! People have enough of their own problems, yet they still crave more grief, sadness, misfortune, struggle and nuisance! But, would you know what's the funniest part of this? These brain-dead script-writers are being paid (much more than many of us) to generate artificial lives of their ever-in-difficulty characters of soap operas. Meanwhile, thousands of real people around the world struggle to survive and yet no body cares. Media aren't interested in these stories anymore. Photojournalism is dead. Neil Burgess, who is a former Chairman of World Press Photo, in his 2010 article writes 'Magazine supplements offer me less for a story which might be used over a cover and eight pages, than their associated paper pay me for a single picture of a celebrity'. If only our civilization could see... it'd see light at the end of a tunnel.

Busking on Amsterdam's Dam Square

To some extent I agree with Burgess' stance on dead photojournalism. Especially if you consider 'civilian journalism' and these multiplying like rabbits' smartphones. But on the other hand, there's a chance for this genre's rebirth. None of us are going to be the next Henri Cartier-Bresson or Robert Capa. Forget about it. This game isn't about fame! It's all about giving some exposure to less or more important matters; documenting it and showing it to the public so hopefully something could be changed. Not instantly however, but at least the public would be aware of the issue.

One of the "Krasnapolsky Boys' is seen busking in Amsterdam's Dam Square

At the beginning of December 2012, I went over to Amsterdam. My previous post was a bit gloomy and dark sided, but that was 'the truth' as I seen it. However, I didn't mention one thing. A trio of open-minded and intelligent young Polish lads who I met there. As I had a good few joints with them, as well as just by myself, I forgot their names. What a faux pas! Excuse me! Thence, I'm forced to call them – the Krasnapolsky Boys, adapting the name after Amsterdam's five star hotel located on Dam Square, where the trio busked to make their living. An interesting fact is that Hotel Krasnapolsky was established in the late XIX century first as a restaurant, by a son of a Polish emigrant Adolph Wilhelm Krasnapolsky.

Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky, Dam Square, Amsterdam

Walking on the Dam Square I heard some drum and base like sounds. 'Hmm... interesting stuff', I thought and moved towards the source of it. Passing by when the music stopped, I heard one of the guys speak Polish. I couldn't do anything else but turn around, walk back and have a chat with them. The conversation started off in English to make sure that they were Polish. We began to talk and soon a lit spliff circulated around. Atmosphere was relaxed. It was cold and wet, but the Krasnapolsky Boys were in a very good mood even though they didn't know where they were going to sleep that night. They left Poland, because there's no hope nor future there, as they said. Busking was their plan for life, at least for now. They wanted to be happy and see some of the world, so the trio went over to Amsterdam to play a bit of drums, make enough money to survive and move on to a new place. Actually, only one of them played, while the other two (having learnt a pretty good American accent) were doing their best to attract the by-passers to stop for a while and listen to the sounds and drop a coin into their leather suitcase. That worked very well. Even I tried to help them by generating “traffic” just by standing around their busking mate.

This is all the gear that "Krasnapolsky Boys" used to make their living.

Both of the days I had been to Amsterdam, I went over to see the Krasnapolsky Boys to have a chat. They didn't make much money, but enough to survive. However, they seemed quite happy to me. With the on-going crisis in the whole Western world, youth has no opportunities to grow and develop. One could say: 'go to college, go study', but for what reason? The same answer I got from the trio. Slippy parchment isn't even good enough to wipe your ass with. These guys were Polish, but their example is universal. Today, over a half of Spain's and Greece's population aged under 25 are unemployed! The governments don't know what to do. So, they are placing bets on the economy, hoping that one of the coupons is the winning one. Sounds like a gamble with our lives and in my opinion, it is!

The boys counting their earning. Not much turnover, but enough to survive.

Photojournalism isn't dead! It's rotten by money and consumptionism media that are trying to kill it. We live in a time of an awful propaganda that we aren't even aware of. In today's world we are torn by a crisis of not only economies, but also the real values. There's enough work for anyone interested in photojournalism. We just have to look around ourselves. But, have in mind that nobody will be willing to pay for such work, unless one of the X-Factor 'celebrities' ends up as a crack junkie and you'd get a chance to capture their ugly drugged mug. Today only what's loud, blinking or flashing, and the most important, sellable is what media want. Stuff that photojournalism used to deal with isn't interesting any more to the dumbed down by propaganda majority. Who cares! Ahhh here... switch to 'Rosalinda' on your channel number 666 for some serious social issues.
Free media? Where in the world? Perhaps in People's Republic of China!